HONG KONG: Peak season bonus for charters

An unexpected surge during the traditional peak season has given the Hong Kong office of Air Charter Service reason to cheer in what it described as a Ã¢â‚¬Å“pleasant surpriseÃ¢â‚¬Â as freight volumes moving on charters dramatically increased since early October. Stephen Fernandez, cargo manager ACS Hong Kong, explains: Ã¢â‚¬Å“We started receiving enquiries in the middle […]

December 1, 2009

By admin

An unexpected surge during the traditional peak season has given the Hong Kong office of Air Charter Service reason to cheer in what it described as a Ã¢â‚¬Å“pleasant surpriseÃ¢â‚¬Â as freight volumes moving on charters dramatically increased since early October. Stephen Fernandez, cargo manager ACS Hong Kong, explains: Ã¢â‚¬Å“We started receiving enquiries in the middle of September, but it wasnÃ¢â‚¬™t until early October that they started booking the flights and the market really picked up. There was, all of a sudden, a lack of availability on B747s. At first most of the freight travelled trans-Pacific over to the States, and then the European market also saw increased demandÃ¢â‚¬Â.

Ã¢â‚¬Å“After last yearÃ¢â‚¬™s distinct lack of peak season in the run-up to Christmas, and the general doom and gloom regarding the economy this year, this boom has come as a refreshing change,Ã¢â‚¬Â he added. But striking a note of caution, Fernandez noted that this surge may be Ã¢â‚¬Å“a bit of a Ã¢â‚¬ËœfauxÃ¢â‚¬™ peak season,Ã¢â‚¬Â created by a capacity vacuum due to the idled freighter capacity. Ã¢â‚¬Å“Still, itÃ¢â‚¬™s fuelled by demand, which can only be a good thing. How much this resurgent demand is galvanised by fewer aircraft is hard to say thoughÃ¢â‚¬Â. Air Charter Service said it was a record year in 2009, both in number of charters, and in revenue.

On to its 6th year, The Payload Asia Awards is a celebration of excellence, spotlighting the air cargo supply chain companies that have excelled in the industry by rising above the very challenging global air freight market. These companies have shown market adeptness, innovative thinking and superior strategy – to make a positive impact on their own business and the market in general.

This year’s award continues with the innovative dual track awards – the first and only in the industry – that offers two unique but equally legitimate views of excellence.

In the vein of the entertainment industry’s People’s Choice Awards and the Academy Awards, we present the Customer Choice Awards and the Industry Choice Awards – the first determined by popular online voting and the second through ranking by an esteemed industry panel.

Payload Asia continues to be the authoritative source for informative, accurate and up-todate news and information on the air cargo industry and related sectors. With its updated and refreshed look the print edition continues to provide high quality coverage on the Asia-Pacific, India-Middle East, Europe-CIS, North & South America and Africa air cargo markets.